Rural areas unfazed by Yucca ruling

Stephen Curran and Kirsten Searer

Tuesday, July 13, 2004 | 10:54 a.m.

A federal appeals court decision last week that could set the planned nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain back indefinitely went almost unnoticed in rural Nevada by some of those most affected by the ruling.

Henry Neth, chairman of the Nye County Commission, said Monday afternoon that he had not yet been briefed on the decision, which came after the court found that the federal Environmental Protection Agency's 10,000-year safety benchmark at Yucca Mountain was incorrect.

Neth and other rural Nevada leaders have touted the proposed 319-mile rail line to Yucca Mountain as a boon for cash-strapped local economies.

Further studies, he said, would only drain more money from state taxpayers.

"It (the appeals court decision) means nothing to Nye County," Neth said after being told of the ruling. "It just means more money to the taxpayers. The people of Nevada have spoken as far as I'm concerned. They're tired of spending money to fight this thing when it could be a boon to the state."

Lea Rasura-Alfano, coordinator for the Lincoln County Nuclear Oversight Program, refused to discuss the decision and referred calls to Lincoln County Commission Chairman Spencer Hafen. Several phone calls to Hafen were not returned Monday.

Work will continue on the project while appeals of the court decision are made, but the ruling gave Nevada officials who have been fighting the proposal to build the nuclear waste dump 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

The anti-Yucca sentiment, which permeates throughout the state, isn't as strong in the counties where there will be impacts, in large part because of the potential economic impact of the project -- new jobs and federal money.

Caliente Mayor Kevin Phillips, a long-time advocate for Yucca Mountain, called the state's efforts to stop the project "misguided."

"It's unfortunate we're spending the kind of money we are on what I think is a futile cause," he said.

Lincoln County Commissioner Tommy Rowe was out of town when the court handed down its decision -- considered a victory by state leaders -- and said he had not yet spoken other commissioners about the decision.

If built, the rail line would carve a path through Caliente and much of rural Lincoln County before reaching Yucca Mountain, located 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas in Nye County.

Rowe, while never a particularly outspoken proponent of the project, previously said the rail line is inevitable and that the county should focus on negotiating for benefits.

"Both sides (the state and the federal government) claim victory so I don't know if we're in the same spot as we were before," Rowe said of differing analysis of the court's decision. "If it does go through we should get our benefits."

Nevada leaders viewed the ruling as a victory for the state, as the decision effectively put the project on indefinite hold while scientists reassess safety concerns stemming from proposed nuclear waste dump. The federal government, however, claimed victory after the three-judge panel's decision to strike down Nevada's claim that the dump was unconstitutional.